Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1887-07-28
miscellaneous.
The BUSY HIGHWAY OF COMMERCE In
vADED BY SOUDANEsE SLAVE STEALERs

The BUSY HIGHWAY OF COMMERCE In
vADED BY SOUDANEsE SLAVE STEALERs.
A few weeks ago it was announced in
the House of Commons that the slave
trade had been reopened on a large scale
on the northern coast of Africa Sir j.
FERGUSON, the under secretary of State
for foreign affairs, said that both the Eng
lish and French governments had taken
energetic steps to suppress the evil. Since
that time British vessels in the Red sea
have captured four slave dhows ard the
Egyptian government has fitted them up
as cruisers for the suppression of the in
famous trade. The slavers were never SO
bold before. They take their human car
goes to Jeddah, which is the port of Mecca
on the Red sea. and they boldly incur the
greatest risks. Less than three weeks ago
the launch of British man-of war was
attacked by SLAYER and six Englishmen
were wounded in the fight The dhow
was. however, sunk. and forty three slaves
were rescued.
The slave dealers are Soudauese, the
followers Of the new Mahdi. All restric-
ton upon slave stealing in the Ssudan
being now removed. they have once more
tapped their old source of supply in
Southern Darfur and the Bahrel Ghazal
region. Slaves are being driven by
thousands to Khartoum. If the dealers
can only smuggle their victims over to
Jeddah and Mecca their profits are enor-
nous. Young women and big boys who
can be driven to the coast al fetal cost OF
not over $25 apiece sell readily in the
larger Arabian towns for from five to ten
times that amount.
The temptation to run great risks in
order to pocket these large profits is
enormous, particularly as the Soudanese
are in desperate need of trade goods and
the slavers have only to return home with
cloth and other desirable commodities to
reap another rich harvest. The slave
trade is stimulated not only by the great
profits of the business. but also by the
fact that all trade is contraband. The
merchants run just as great risk if they
are caught with ostrich feathers or ivory.
on which the profit is much less than on
slaves.
The sufferings of the poor captives are
terrible. 1t takes about seven weeks to
tr,ve them from Khartoum to the coast.
One party that recently left Khar.oum 800
strong reached the coast only 200 in num-
Der. The bones of the other hundred
strew the route from Berber to the sea.
1t is said that about 5000 slaves hay e
been struggled across the Red sea to Jed
dab since January LIST. 1t is remarkable
hat the semi barbarians of the Soudan are
able to carry on so large a trade in these
waters. Every dhow whose hold is packed
with black merchandise crosses the busy
highway followed by most of the vessels
plying between Europe and the Orient.
The slaves are taken to some little har-
Dor or anchorage north or south of Soua-
kin, which is the only point where British
vessels are stationed. They are quickly
packed into dhows which slip over to
Jeddah in the night time. The people of
Jeddah and Mecca are slave dealers them
selves and thorough sympathizers with the
Soudanese, and the traffic is secretly
lostered by the Turkish authorities in those
towns. 1t has just been discovered that
many of these new slaves have been in
troduced into Egypt by pilgrim bands re-
turning home. who pretend that the
captves are legitimate parts of their
caravan. Many OF these slaves have been
liberated by the authorities.
The only remedies for this sudden re-
vival of the slave trade on the Red sea
seem to be relentless war on the slave
dealers and the opening of the Soudan as
soon as possible to legitimate commerce
-Neo York Sun.